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I really wanted to like this book more than I did, being such a big fan of Zephaniah and in particular his first novel, Face. Unfortunately Teacher's Dead is just not as good. The main character, Jackson Jones is so utterly bland I felt it hard to feel anything for him. We're given very little info on him, certainly nothing physical, not even his age, apart from the fact his Dad has left, he's a bit of a loner and he likes school work, and these are hardly the most endearing qualities. His only real penchant is for hanging around with older women; his relationship with Mary Joseph (seriously, her name is Mary Joseph. I can't wait to meet her brother, Jesus God John the Baptist) is creepy to say the least, likewise with Miss Ferrier, especially after she's dumped urine on him multiple times. I also found it strange that his Mum took so long to get involved with his older lady friends, she was apparently fine with him going for drinks, chess tournaments and court dates with someone she barely knew. Jackson's head teacher Mrs Martel seemed strangely child-like, she had a chummy relationship with Jackson that was bizarre given he was one of her students and often asked him for advice. The weirdest thing about this book was the tone though. Child detectives are not uncommon in kiddie fiction, but they're normally accompanied by a host of well-meaning adults, a bunch of companions and a PG-13 mystery to solve. Jackson is out on his own, his informants include a mentally unstable old lady and his case is the murder of a teacher. It's a jarring blend of derring-do investigation and real life horror that just doesn't work.

The writing style is nice and fluid, although there were a couple of wonky sentences that would never have escaped my red editing pen, the plot rattles along nicely and the ending is good. I just feel the book would be better off as a therapy tool rather than an actual novel. Jackson is so nothingy that any child suffering a bereavement could easily put themselves in his shoes, but ultimately that's all this book ever feels, nothingy.